


and they said you were the crooked kind

by ApatheticRobots



Series: treating tfp starscream right since the show won't do it [2]
Category: Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers: Prime
Genre: Ambiguous Relationships, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Nightmares, Platonic Cuddling, Sharing a Bed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-18
Updated: 2020-08-18
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:28:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,297
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25940629
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ApatheticRobots/pseuds/ApatheticRobots
Summary: "What was it this time?"Starscream scowled. "Scrap if I know," he said, voice overlaid with static thanks to the slight damage to his vocalizer. "I suppose I was standing too close when he got bad news. That was enough."Breakdown frowned. Knock Out bit his lip and kept working.He had his qualms with Starscream. But never, not in all these millions of years of war, would he have wished this on the seeker.
Relationships: Breakdown & Knock Out & Starscream (Transformers), Breakdown/Knock Out
Series: treating tfp starscream right since the show won't do it [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1919443
Comments: 8
Kudos: 141





	and they said you were the crooked kind

**Author's Note:**

> this probably doesnt take place in the same 'verse as my other ko & stsc fic but theres nothing explicitly contradicting it  
> set some time between megatron's reawakening and starscream leaving the 'cons.
> 
> rated T for things will get better, as well as some of the subject matter discussed. title is from "Always Gold" by Radical Face.
> 
> wrote this in an hour at like 3 am. unbeta'd.

Normally, Knock Out would happily welcome returning patients to his medbay as many times as they saw fit to get themselves injured. However given that he wasn't being paid for his work on the  _ Nemesis, _ it was more annoying than anything how often the medical berth ended up occupied.

Most would assume, if they saw Knock Out's medical reports, that the patient marked down as "StSc" was a frontline fighter. If only based on the frequency at which the designation came up. They'd be rather taken aback to learn the mech the designation referred to was in fact the Decepticons' second in command, and that he rarely ever did any actual front-line fighting himself. Any support the SIC provided was either from the air or delivered once the tide of battle had already turned in the 'cons' direction. Knowing this, it would seem strange to them, how often this "StSc" ended up in the medbay.

If they spent any amount of time on the bridge of the ship, their confusion would quickly be rectified.

Starscream was annoying and a bit of a jerk sometimes, sure, but Knock Out didn't think he was bad enough to deserve the treatment he got. The seeker had never done anything that Knock Out had been privy to that would warrant him earning the role of punching bag. And yet here they were. Knock Out leaning over Starscream's damaged frame and repairing him in silence, Breakdown on the other side carefully buffing out some scrapes on his leg, while the seeker sat there and tried not to look like he was in pain.

The scrapes were the easiest thing to fix. Knock Out and Breakdown both had plenty of experience repairing those. A few minutes with a rotary buffer and they could have Starscream looking clean as the day he came off the assembly line. The next easiest thing to fix was the gashes. While they required soldering, it was a simple go over with a sautering iron to seal them and careful work with some sandpaper to smooth out the scar left behind. Then maybe touch up the paint or buff it a little to get rid of any lingering damage.

Missing limbs were… not  _ easy. _ While Knock Out could reattach a limb no problem if it had broken clean, a jagged break meant there'd have to be a little more amputation involved, and if the missing parts were too badly damaged he'd have to put together a whole new limb. Which-- depending on the availability of materials and the amount of free time he had-- could mean a very painful few days for the injured party.

The dents were the worst. It wasn't that they were particularly damaging in and of themselves, especially not if they weren't in a crucial place. It was just that they were rather difficult to fix. Specifically the small dents made by a rough grip on plating designed to be light and fast in the air.

Most of Knock Out's usual tricks for fixing dents wouldn't work particularly well in these situations. The dents were too small to pull out without warping the surrounding plating, and a lot of times he couldn't just detach the plating the dents were in and hammer them out. A mech kind of needed their throat cables attached at all times to keep their processor running.

He hated the dents. For so many reasons. They were difficult to fix, they were a marr on Starscream's otherwise sleek frame. They were very obvious to anyone that happened to see them. It was like… a claim. A show of ownership. A clear indicator to anyone who saw them and connected the dots of just who held power over the seeker. Knock Out  _ hated _ the dents.

None of them talked much, when Starscream ended up in the medbay after one of their boss's little tizzies, but Knock Out almost always asked the same question. Receptiveness was varied. "What was it this time?"

Starscream scowled. "Scrap if I know," he said, voice overlaid with static thanks to the slight damage to his vocalizer. "I suppose I was standing too close when he got bad news. That was enough."

Breakdown frowned. Knock Out bit his lip and kept working.

He had his qualms with Starscream. But never, not in all these millions of years of war, would he have wished this on the seeker. 

Once the repairs were completed, Starscream began to get to his pedes, but Knock Out grabbed his wrist before he could stand. Not too hard-- he'd  _ just _ finished fixing the dents-- but hard enough to keep him still. "Wait."

Starscream gave him a narrow look.

"Don't leave just yet," he said. "I can claim it's necessary for you to stay in the medbay overnight. You know he won't argue with me about it. He'll leave you alone, he won't harass you if you're here." Knock Out had made it quite clear that  _ he _ was the only one allowed to make mechs beg for mercy within the medbay.

The seeker started to protest, but at that point Breakdown returned from putting their tools away and cut him off with a servo on his shoulder. "Just for tonight. No one has to know."

That seemed to be the deciding factor. Starscream's expression was still downturned, but he silently nodded. Trusting he wasn't about to jump up and run off as soon as he got the chance, Knock Out let him go.

He sat down on the medical berth again once he was no longer behind restrained. Breakdown muttered something quiet and, after getting a nod of assent, grabbed one of the good buffers from where Knock Out hid it to keep it from being stolen and started polishing Starscream's frame. Knock Out, meanwhile, got to work on filling out a report of the incident.

_ Damage non-lethal, injuries repaired, _ he wrote.  _ Overnight stay required for recovery. _ Megatron was a stubborn glitch. But even  _ he _ wouldn't argue with the mech responsible for his health.

Report complete, he logged it in the database, turning the datapad off before he'd have to see Megatron's griping. He was not in the mood.

When he glanced back at the other two mechs in the room, Breakdown had finished with the buffer and was now simply leaning against the berth, one arm around Starscream's shoulders, while the seeker examined the shine of his plating. It wouldn't stay so flawless for long-- not with his lifestyle-- but for now it looked nice.

Not as nice as Knock Out. But you could hardly surpass perfection.

He technically had more work to do before he could retire for the evening, but he also didn't really care, so instead of filling out any of his overdue reports he just left the desk and sidled up to Breakdown's side. He gave the bruiser a nudge and a pointed look towards their habsuite. After a few moments, Breakdown nodded, and started ushering Starscream to stand. 

"What are you doing?"

"We're going to bed," Breakdown said.

The look on Starscream's face at that was somewhere between disappointment and fear. "I-- I see. I suppose I'll just be going, then…" 

Knock Out huffed, curling an arm around his midsection and pulling him along before he could run off. "Weren't you listening?" he said, glancing at the seeker to gauge his reaction. "He said  _ we're  _ going to bed."

Starscream got it. His optics widened slightly.

"...Oh."

Good, he wasn't going to throw a fit about it. That saved them all quite a bit of trouble. 

Knock Out and Breakdown's shared habsuite wasn't exactly  _ tidy, _ but it was far from being unmanageable. He cared less about the cleanliness of his living space than his frame but he still cared. And Breakdown was rather particular with where his sparse belongings were placed. So while there was some stuff scattered on the floor and piled haphazardly on the table, one could walk through without having to step over anything. Starscream still gave the room a mildly disdainful look.

Normally they had a bit of a routine before they actually went to bed, but Knock Out didn't want to just leave Starscream sitting there awkwardly while they went about their business, so both he and Breakdown opted to forgo the routine for the night and just get right to the recharging part.

The shape of Breakdown's frame made figuring out a sleeping position a bit of a chore, but they'd been together long enough that they had a few tried and true ones in their repertoire. Including ones that could incorporate a third party. As well as a party with wings. (There was a reason Knock Out's frame was so sleek, after all. Most grounder frames didn't have their tires sticking out so obtusely as the ones on his back did. He didn't have to explain his choice of alt-mode to  _ anyone. _ )

Breakdown laid down first, flat on his back, while Knock Out curled up on his front against his side (his back to the open room to accommodate his tires) and slung an arm around Breakdown's torso. Breakdown's chest was used as a pillow, and he wrapped one arm around Knock Out to pull him close.

After a moment of stillness, Knock Out glanced back to see Starscream standing awkwardly near the doorway. He rolled his optics and gestured the seeker over.

There was still some hesitation in Starscream's movements, but he clambered over the two of them and settled against Breakdown's other side without any kind of complaint. Breakdown wrapped an arm around him as well (mindful of his wings) and closed his optics contentedly. Knock Out moved the arm around Breakdown's middle to rest over Starscream instead. He could feel the nervous humming of the seeker's engine against his plating.

"Relax, Screamer," he murmured. "You're safe here. Breakdown and I will protect you."

Starscream froze for a moment. He could apparently tell how genuine Knock Out was with his sentiment, because a second or two later he practically melted against Breakdown's side, optics closing. Knock Out would not have been surprised if he started purring or something. Seekers were known to do so.

He shifted a little so he could stretch his arm a bit further, curling it over both Starscream and Breakdown in a protective embrace. Which was ironic, because he'd crumple like paper if anyone even looked at him funny, but it was the intent that mattered.

They lay in silence for several hours. Breakdown fell asleep first, as he always did, and Knock Out evidently must have passed out as well, even if he couldn't remember doing so. He was only so sure he  _ had  _ done so because he was very suddenly jarred awake. The cause of the rather rude awakening became clear when he saw Starscream writhing where he lay, optics screwed shut and a high-pitched whine coming from his frame. Whether it was his vocalizer, his fans, or his engine making the sound, Knock Out couldn't be sure.

The disturbance was enough to wake Breakdown as well, and dim yellow optics slowly blinked open to squint at the squirming seeker, taking a moment to process the situation before they brightened abruptly.

"Screamer," Breakdown said, nudging his side, "s'okay. It's just a dream. You're safe."

The movement and sound quieted a little. Not enough. Breakdown gave Knock Out a worried look. This was… pretty bad. Whatever the source, that wasn't a healthy noise for any part of a frame to be making.

Knock Out shifted his arm slightly, reaching his servo up to trace the seam between Starscream's trembling wings. The seeker's panic subsided almost instantly with the motion, whining tapering off as he stilled, awkwardly wrapping himself around Breakdown again. Breakdown shifted enough to make both of them a bit more comfortable while keeping Starscream in a position that let Knock Out have access to his back.

"It's alright," he whispered. "You're safe."

A few minutes of the same calming motion later and Starscream was once more sound asleep. Breakdown met Knock Out's optics, and he was sure his own were mirroring the concern he saw in the bruiser's expression.

[Is it always this bad?] he comm'd Knock Out's private channel in order to avoid the risk of waking Starscream.

[Can't say,] Knock Out replied, running his servo over Starscream's back as he'd seen people do with cats. [It's rare I actually get him to stay, much less recharge around me.]

[Think it's about… Him?]

Over the commlink, the capital 'H' in  _ Him _ was more than implied. [Likely, especially considering today's events. Might also have been something before.]

[Before?] 

Knock Out silently sent over a datapacket, a brief summary of Starscream's previous medical history. He could tell when Breakdown got to the bad part(s) by the stifled wince of the frame he was pressed up against.

[Damn. His partner… then his whole trine barely a millennia later. How is he even still  _ functioning? _ ] His optics flicked to the sleeping seeker. [His spark should've burnt itself out ages ago.]

[If anyone's stubborn enough to survive that many broken bonds, I'd believe Starscream is capable.]

Breakdown moved one servo to trace a digit over the crest on Starscream's helm. "You are a force of nature," he murmured, barely audible.

Knock Out wrapped his arms around the both of them again. "He's too good for this place."

"You both are." Strong arms pulled both him and Starscream closer as Breakdown corrected himself; "we  _ all _ are."

"Think we could convince him to leave?"

"Not if his life depended on it." 

Knock Out frowned, optics dimming sadly as he took in the seeker peacefully recharging across from him. "That's a shame," he said. "Because I think it just might."

**Author's Note:**

> if you caught it i made an allusion to the "former seeker ko" theory because i like it a lot lmao


End file.
